










Brick Pavements 


BY ... 

4 " 

W. W. WALLACE, Jr. 




CLAY PUBLISHING CO., 

- W - 

WILLOUGHBY, O. 






ofr 00 Hg, 






JUN 14 1895 




At! 


,^JVaSH^3 


Price, $i.oo. 





T E 2.S S' 

.Wa. 


Copyright, 1895, 

By CLAY PUBLISHING CO. 




Brick Pavements 


A Brief Introductory Review. 


T HE use of brick for street paving is by no means a 
recent innovation or an experiment. On the con¬ 
trary, brick pavements have a history dating back beyond 
the commencement of the present century. They have 
been in use in Holland for over a hundred years. In 
Osaca and other cities of Japan, pavements composed of 
vitrified brick 7 in. long, 4 in. deep and 1 y z in. thick 
have been in successful use for more than a century. 
In parts of England, brick pavements constructed 
over 40 years ago, of the celebrated Staffordshire blue 
brick, are yet in good condition. Brick Pavements 
in the United States were first introduced at Charles¬ 
ton, W. Va., 22 years ago, and at Bloomington, Ill., 
21 years ago, and both of these cities still use brick 
as the material for their pavements. Brick pavements 
have been in use for 11 years in Peoria, Champaign 
and Decatur, Ill., and Steubenville, O.; for 10 years at 
Galesburg, Ill.; for 9 years in Youngstown, O.; for 
8 years in Burlington, Iowa, Nashville, Tenn., and 
Columbus, O., the latter city now having over sixty miles 
of brick pavements in use ; Springfield, Ill., Alliance, 




— 4 — 

O., and Des Moines, Iowa, first adopted brick pave¬ 
ments 7years ago ; Cleveland, O., Memphis, Tenn., Chat¬ 
tanooga, Teun., Davenport and Clinton, Iowa, Norwalk, 
O., Beatrice, Neb., and Fort Smith, Ark., adopted them 6 
years ago, while among the cities which have used brick 
pavements for a period of at least 5 years may be named 
Chicago, Ill., Detroit, Midi., Topeka, Kas., Amsterdam, 
N. Y., Mattoou and Lfitchfiel*?, Ill. 

Brick pavements are now in use in over one-hundred 
and fifty of the leading cities and towns of the United 
States, and the number is constantly on the increase. 
Many cities will this year, for the first time, adopt 
brick pavements, while others having previously laid 
and tested experimental pavements will add many miles 
of this desirable improvement during the coming 
season. 

The prominence which brick paving is taking is very 
apparent to any one who has given the matter attention, 
nor is this surprising when we take into consideration 
the difficulties which have been experienced with other 
forms of pavement, and the many advantages which 
brick offer. The remarkable success of brick as a 
paving material has greatly enhanced its popularity, 
and it is the opinion of those who have given the matter 
earnest thought and careful investigation, that good, 
hard burned, vitrified brick will be the paving material 
of the future. 













The Manufacture and Use of 
Paving Brick. 


CHAPTER I. 

THE KIND OF CLAY REQUIRED. 


I N considering the kind of clay suitable for first-class 
paving brick, it will be well to bear in mind the quali¬ 
ties which such brick must possess. They must be per¬ 
fect in form, homogeneous in structure, and to a large 
extent impervious to water, consequently they must be 
thoroughly vitrified. If the brick are not thoroughly 
vitrified, they will absorb too large a percentage of 
water, and when subjected to extremes of temperature 
at different seasons of the year, will rapidly disintegrate 
and require replacing. At the same time, vitrification 
should not be carried beyond the point where the brick 
still retain a high degree of toughness or elastic 
resistance. 

From the foregoing, it will be seen that clay used for 
the manufacture of vitrified paving brick must be both 
fusible and refractory. It must be fusible in order 
that the proper degree of homogeneity and vitrification 
may be readily secured; it must be refractory in order 
that the brick may retain their perfect shape under the 
high degree of heat necessary to produce fusion. 
Many clays which vitrify readily do not contain the 
necessary elements to enable them to hold up under vit- 
ri fying heat, but wi 11 mel t down into an i rregularly shaped 




6 — 


mass ; still other clays are of such a refractory nature 
that the highest degree of heat fails to produce fusion 
and vitrification. In such cases it is necessary to supply 
the missing elements by mixing with a proper propor¬ 
tion of clay which does possess them. 

Experience has demonstrated the stiff or tempered 
clay process to be, as a rule, the one best suited for pro¬ 
ducing paving brick, from the fact that it gives them a 
strength of structure not produced by any other process. 
Consequently the clay must be plastic enough to work 
freely and wfith a moderate amount of power upon 
machinery making brick by this process. The clay 
should not be too plastic, for if the friction of clay upon 
clay is less than the friction of the clay upon the die 
of the brick machine, the particles will slip past each 
other and the center of the bar of clay will move more 
rapidly than the outside, and, in case these particles fail 
to bond together perfectly in the process of drying and 
burning, objectionable laminations or cores in the brick 
will be the result. From this cause it is sometimes 
desirable to mix in a quantity of clay of a more gritty 
nature, thereby overcoming the liability of the clay 
particles to pass each other too easily. 

For the manufacture of paving brick, two classes of 
materials have been most commonly used, one of which 
is shale or slate clay abounding in various parts of the 
country, and frequently discovered in connection with 
coal beds. Its structure is of a slaty character being 
frequently composed of thin layers. The other leading 
material commonly used for pavers is a low grade of 
fire clay, generally found directly under coal veins. 
These materials can be successfully used both alone and 
combined, some very fine vitrified ware having been 
produced from a mixture of shale and fire clay. In a 


— 7 — 


limited number of cases, there have been found deposits 
of river clay, embodying the necessary characteristics 
for the successful manufacture of paving brick. An 
essential constituent of clay for paving brick is silica, 
securing the necessary property of refraction. Alu¬ 
mina is also of great importance, producing elasticity 
and toughness. A small percentage of oxide of iron is 
also desirable, and assists in fusion and also in securing 
a good dark color. A limited percentage of magnesia 
or potash makes the clay more easy to fuse; lime, how¬ 
ever is undesirable, and if present in any considerable 
quantity may seriously injure or ruin the brick. 

It is very essential that the clay or mixture of clays 
used should combine in proper proportions the necessary 
properties as regards refractoriness, fusibility and plastic¬ 
ity. If the paving material contains the proper pro¬ 
portionate percentage of silica and alumina, the expan¬ 
sion and contraction characteristic of these ingredients 
under heat will counteract each other, and the brick 
will not only be thoroughly vitrified, but also strong, 
tough and elastic, of perfect shape, and free from cracks 
or other imperfections. 

The percentages in which the constituents above 
named should appear in clays suitable for paving brick 
is subject to considerable variation, as has been shown 
by analyses of the material in use in a number of lead¬ 
ing paving brick plants. Thus, in different paving brick 
clays we find the proportion of silica to range from 50 
per cent, or thereabouts, to 70 per cent; of alumina 
from 15 per cent to 30 per cent; and of oxide of iron 
from 2 per cent to as high as 15 per cent. 

While a reliable chemical analysis has its value in 
determining whether the material contains the necessary 
elements for the production of first-class pavers, this 




— 8 — 


test alone is not sufficient. A thorough and complete 
working test should also be made of the material to be 
used, working it upon the machinery that will likely be 
adopted, then drying and burning the samples, iu order 
to determine the suitability of the material before mak¬ 
ing any investments in the way of buildings, machinery, 
dryers and kilns. The clay used is, after all, the matter 
of prime importance, as upon it to a large degree depends 
the failure or success of the enterprise. Good ma¬ 
chinery and appliances are, of course, a necessity, and 
care should be taken in the selection of all parts of the 
brickyard equipment; but good machinery and appli¬ 
ances cannot and will not insure success if the clay is of 
inferior quality. “ First be sure your clay is right, then 
go ahead”, is a motto which should govern any one 
contemplating the manufacture of vitrified paving 
brick. 



CHAPTER II. 


PREPARATION AND WORKING OF THE CLAY. 


T HE clay should be uniformly reduced to as great a 
degree of fineness as possible, as upon this, to a 
large extent, will depend the uniformity of the product. 
The machine most commonly used in paving-brick fac¬ 
tories for crushing and grinding the clay is the dry pan. 
In fact, as a rule, shale and fire clays such as are com 
inonly used for making paving brick cannot be uniform¬ 
ly and successfully reduced by an ordinary roller crusher 
or disintegrator. 

As soon as the material is crushed by the heavy rollers 
of the dry pan, the centrifugal motion of the revolving- 
pan scatters it over the perforated sifter plates at the 
outer diameter of the pan, and, if sufficiently ground, it 
sifts through, falling upon a platform or secondary pan, 
from which it is scraped into the boot of the bucket ele¬ 
vator ; if not ground sufficiently fine to pass through 
the sifter plates of the dry pan, the scrapers throw it 
again under the crushing rollers. The elevator conveys 
the ground clay to the screen. Three styles of screen 
are in common use, namely : revolving, vibrating and 
inclined-stationary screens. The screens are ordinarily 
so arranged that the tailings, or particles too coarse to 
passthrough the perforations of the screen, drop into a 
chute and are returned to the dry pan to be reground. 
In some cases, smooth roll crushers, with rollers ground 
off perfectly true and set close together, are used for re¬ 
grinding the tailings. After being screened, the clay 
drops into the pug mill or into a chute or storage bin 




— IO — 


communicating with it. At the pug mill sufficient water 
is added to produce a mixture of the desired consistency, 
the pug mill tempering it and making of it a homoge¬ 
neous mass ready for the brick machine. The pug mill 
is ordinarily arranged on a platform directly above the 
brick machine, and delivers the clay into the brick 
machine hopper. 

The dry pan is adapted for the reduction of only such 
material as is practically dry or contains but a small 
percentage of moisture. Where the clay in its natural 
state contains too much moisture to be ground success¬ 
fully in a dry pan, it is dried by artificial or natural 
means until it is in such condition that the dry pan will 
handle it; or, it can be ground in its moist condition by 
means of wet pans, in which case further preparation by 
means of pug mills will not be necessary, as the material 
when ground and tempered by the wet pans will be in a 
proper condition to go direct into the brick machine. 

In the manufacture of brick for paving purposes, stiff 
mud machinery, producing wire cut brick, is ordinarily 
preferred, as it makes the brick stiff enough to retain 
their shape, even when hacked several courses high 
direct from the machine. These brick can be repressed 
direct from the brick machine, if desired. They have 
greater strength of structure than brick produced by the 
sand molding or dry clay process, and hence are better 
calculated to sustain the severe strains which paving 
brick receive. In a limited number of cases, the soft 
clay process, producing sand molded brick, has been 
successfully used for the manufacture of pavers, but such 
instances are comparatively rare. Some experiments 
have been made along the line of attempting to produce 
suitable paving brick by the dry clay process, but as 
yet we have not learned of any case where this has been 


— II — 


successful. A large majority of the modern plants for the 
manufacture of paving brick are equipped with die w'ork- 
ing machines of the auger type, producing either end-cut 
or side-cut brick, as desired. These machines produce 
a continuously moving bar of clay, which is then severed 
into bricks of the desired length or thickness by means 
of automatic or hand-power wire strung cutters. Both 
end-cut and side-cut brick are manufactured by leading 
concerns and have been used very successfully. The 
present tendency seems to be in favor of a side-cut brick, 
it being claimed by their advocates that they are less 
subject to laminations or structural defects. 

In many paving brick factories the brick are repressed, 
improving their general appearance, imparting any 
special shapes desired, imprinting trade marks or the 
name of the maker, and making a more uniform and 
desirable product. In the opinion of many, a stronger, 
denser, better wearing material is produced by repress¬ 
ing the product of the brick machine. That this view 
has its weight with municipal authorities is evidenced 
by the receut action of the Chicago Council, which has 
specified that all paving brick for use in their city must 
be repressed. The Board of Public Works, Louisville, 
Ky., has also passed a resolution requiring that all paving 
brick used in their city must be repressed, have round 
corners and be stamped with the name of the maker. 

In case the brick are repressed, power represses will 
be found to be most economical to operate. They 
should be arranged conveniently with reference to the 
brick machine off bearing table, in order that the brick 
may be transferred to the repress with the least possible 
expenditure of time and labor. The brick when placed 
upon the feed table of the repress are automatically fed 
into the die and pressure applied ; then ejected from the 


die and placed upon the off-bearing belt, from which 
they can be readily transferred to the dry cars or bar- 
rows, preparatory to conveying to the drying depart¬ 
ment. 




FORMS OF SIDEWALK BRICK. 













































CHAPTER III. 


DRYING AND BURNING THE BRICK. 


I T is important that the brick be carefully and thor¬ 
oughly dried. If dried too rapidly or under unfavor¬ 
able circumstances, the entire product of the machine 
may be checked or cracked and ruined. If placed in the 
kilu before being thoroughly dried, or if some of the 
brick are thoroughly dried and others are not, the loss 
of all or a portion of the kiln may result, or an unusual 
amount of fuel, time and care be required to secure an 
even and satisfactory burn. 

For the average paving brick factory, artificial dryers 
have become a necessity. In order to fill contracts on 
time the manufacturer must be able to rely upon a 
certain daily output of the plant, regardless of favorable 
or unfavorable conditions of the weather. The use of 
the dryer also makes possible a given daily output with 
the greatest possible economy of space. Brick can be 
dried more evenly and more thoroughly than is possible 
in open air drying, which issubject to varying conditions 
of sunshine, heat and wind. The liability of loss from 
severe storms is avoided, and in many cases brick which 
cannot be dried successfully and without cracking in the 
open air can be handled with excellent results in an 
artificial dryer. The factory can also be operated the 
entire season, thereby greatly increasing the annual 
output of the works, and making it possible to retain 
the services of skilled workmen by giving them em¬ 
ployment the year around. 



— 14 — 


The dryers in use vary widely in principle and con¬ 
struction. Steam dryers, hot air dryers and hot floor 
dryers are used with varying success in different local¬ 
ities and with different kinds of clay. The steam dryer, 
however, is probably the most popular and the one 
most commonly used. 

Where a dryer is used, the brick, as they come from 
the brick machine or repress are piled upon single or 
double deck cars, of iron or steel, the loaded cars are 
run direct into the nearest end of the dryer, being grad¬ 
ually pushed farther into the dryer by the loaded cars 
following. 

For burning paving brick, down draft kilns are gen¬ 
erally used and are usually located near the lower end 
of the dryer. The tracks from the dryer should be so 
arranged that when the brick are perfectly dry, the 
loaded cars can be run direct into the kilns, and the 
brick are then unloaded from the cars and set in the 
kiln ready for burning, the manner of setting being 
practically the same as in setting building brick. The 
brick must be so placed in the kiln that they will not 
topple over nor get out of plumb when undergoing 
shrinkage, and, also, so that uniform spaces will be left 
for the draft. The kiln must be fired slowly at first, so 
that any moisture contained in the brick maybe expell¬ 
ed, as the brick mast be perfectly dry before it will be 
safe to apply a high degree of heat to them. The pro¬ 
cess of water smoking as it is called, takes ordinarily 
from 48 hours to 3 or 4 days, the fire for the first day or 
two being a small one, which is gradually increased. 
The dampers and drafts should be so regulated during 
the water smoking that the steam formed by the 
moisture expelled from the brick can readily escape 
from the kiln. After the water smoke is all off, the 


— 15 — 


firing can be pushed, increasing it until a sufficient 
degree of heat is secured, and maintaining it until the 
brick are thoroughly burned, and have reached the 
proper stage of vitrification. The brick should not be 
burned so long as to take the life out of them or make 
them brittle, nor until they melt and lose their shape, 
but only to that point where the greatest homogeneity of 
structure, combined with toughness or the property of 
elastic resistance, is secured. The eye of the experienced 
burner will tell him when the proper degree of heat is 
reached. The amount the brick in the kiln have settled 
will indicate when the heat has been retained long 
enough. 

In some cases experiments have been conducted with 
pyrometers or heat indicators with a view of ascertaining 
whether such instruments could be successfully used 
as guides to indicate the amount and duration of heat 
necessary for a successful burn, but, so far as learned, 
the results secured have not, as a rule, been 
satisfactory. New developments in this line, how¬ 
ever, may greatly simplify the burning of clay pro¬ 
ducts, and make the process one of greater uniformity 
and certainty. 

The kiln should be allowed to cool off very gradually, 
as upon this, to a large extent, depends the quality of 
the brick. In the opinion of many experienced man¬ 
ufacturers, slowly cooling the brick becomes, in effect, 
an annealing process, and makes the brick stronger 
and tougher. On the contrary, too rapid cooling will 
oftentimes make them brittle, and the admission of cold 
air is apt to produce checks and cracks. After the kiln 
is cooled and opened, the brick are ready for assorting, 
shipment and use. 


CHAPTER IV. 


KIND OF BRICK SUITABLE FOR PAVERS. 


I N constructing a brick pavement, the kind of brick 
used should have careful attention. One pavement 
laid with imperfect, porous or soft brick will do more 
harm to the brick paving interests than a dozen well 
laid durable pavements will counteract. The brick 
should be of such density as to be practically impervious 
to water, and consequently not subject to the action of 
frost. A brick that will absorb water to any consider¬ 
able extent is unfit for paving, from the fact that the 
water which it will absorb in wet weather will in winter 
freeze, causing rapid disintegration. A good paving 
brick should also possess toughness and tenacity to such 
a degree that the edges will not break off nor the surface 
of the brick wear rapidly when exposed to heavy traffic. 
A tough, thoroughly vitrified brick is by far the best 
form of paving material, combining imperviousness to 
water with great strength and durability. A common, 
hard burned, and unverified brick is liable to be burned 
hardest at the surface, and when this is worn will be 
subject to much more rapid and irregular wear, but a 
properly vitrified brick will possess substantially the 
same degree of hardness throughout, and the wear will 
be uniform and comparatively imperceptible. There 
are a variety of tests for determining the density, 
strength and durability of paving brick, the principal 
ones of which are briefly described in the following 
chapter. 



CHAPTER V. 

HOW PAVING BRICK ARE TESTED. 


T HE principal tests to which paving brick are sub¬ 
jected are as follows: 

The Absorption Test: 

This test is for the purpose of determining the density 
of the brick and the degree of vitrification. The brick 
should be thoroughly dried in an oven or by other 
means, then weighed, immersed in water for a period of 
from six to twenty four hours or longer. After removing 
the brick from the water the surface moisture should be 
wiped off, and the bricks weighed to determine the 
amount of water absorbed. A brick which absorbed no 
water at all might not be desirable, as this would likely 
indicate that the brick had been vitrified to such an ex¬ 
tent as to render it brittle. On the other hand, it 
should not absorb too much water, for reasons previ¬ 
ously stated. The percentage of absorption allowable 
depends somewhat upon the nature of the brick and 
the kind of material it is made from, as brick made 
from some clays may safely absorb a larger percentage 
of water than those made from other clays. 

At Peoria, Illinois, a new test has been recently 
adopted to determine the amount of absorption permis¬ 
sible with different kinds of brick. This test is called 
the Freezing Test, and is as follows : 

Freezing Test: 

Samples of paving brick, made from the material to 
be tested and showing varying degrees of absorption, 
are obtained, the samples being thoroughly dried, 



— iS — 


weighed, and immersed in water for 48 hours to deter¬ 
mine the percentage of absorption. The brick are then 
frozen in a vat of water, being subjected to a tempera¬ 
ture of 17 degrees Fahrenheit. After being thoroughly- 
frozen, the samples are thawed, dried, weighed, and 
the loss of weight noted. This process is repeated 
until the samples which absorb the most water are en¬ 
tirely disintegrated. This test has not, as yet, been 
generally adopted. It may, however, in time be found 
a very reliable means of definitely determining the 
amount of absorption permissible in any particular 
brand of paving brick. 

The Abrasion or Rattler Test: 

This test is to determine the toughness and wearing 
quality of the brick. The brick are placed in a revolv¬ 
ing cylinder, such as is ordinarily used for cleaning 
castings. The cylinder should not be to exceed 24 to 
28 inches in diameter, and should revolve at from 15 to 
25 revolutions per minute. With the brick in the cylin¬ 
der should be added about a hundred pounds of iron 
castings weighing about one-fourth of a pound each. 
Too heavy castings should not be used, as they are apt to 
break the brick by falling upon their broad sides, a test 
manifestly unfair, as it subjects the brick to usage which 
they do not receive when laid in a pavement. Neither 
should the revolving cylinder be run at too high a rate 
of speed, as in this case the centrifugal motion would 
be apt to interfere with the securing of the amount of 
friction desirable in a test of this character. Owing to 
the different styles of corners—sharp, round and bev¬ 
eled—used upon different brands of brick, the first half 
hour’s rattler test is less reliable than of subsequent 
half hours. The wear in subsequent half hours is 
found to be more nearly proportionate and equal. It 



— 19 — 


would consequently seem advisable to base the result of 
a test of this character upon the percentage of loss 
shown after the first half hour. 

A new style of tumblingbarrel has been lately devised, 
so arranged that the brick to be tested compose the 
inside lining of the cylinder. The iron, etc., used for 
the test drops upon and conies in contact with the 
exposed surfaces of the brick. It would seem that this 
form of rattler would afford a more accurate test, as it 
only wears on the face of the brick, and consequently 
complies more closely with the usage which brick 
receive when laid in a pavement. 

Grinding Test: 

In this test the brick are ground by large circular 
disks revolving rapidly, a heavy weight being placed 
upon the brick. This test is seldom used, however. 

Crushing Test: 

Small pieces of brick are ground off or faced up so as 
to be perfectly true ; are laid upon edge between flat 
surfaces, and pressure applied until they are crushed. 
The height of these prepared pieces should be twice 
their width. 

Drop Test: 

The toughness and strength of the brick is sometimes 
determined by dropping a heavy weight a number of 
times upon the brick and noting the result. 

Breaking Test: 

Another test for showing the capabilities of brick for 
resisting breaking strains is conducted by placing the 
brick on edge between sharp surfaces and noting the 
pressure at which a fracture takes place. 

The above tests should be made with full-sized bricks, 


— 20 — 


except in the crushing test. In the latter, small cubes 
of brick, prepared as specified, are ordinarily used. 

Standard Specifications: 

The tests most commonly used are the absorption, 
abrasion, crushing and breaking tests. No uniform 
test standards have as yet been generally adopted, al¬ 
though there is undoubtedly necessity for the formu¬ 
lation of standard specifications as to the exact condi¬ 
tions under which all tests of paving brick shall be 
conducted, and the requirements with which acceptable 
paving brick must comply. At the 1895 Convention of 
the National Brick Manufacturers’ Association, a com¬ 
mittee was appointed to take up this matter and conduct 
tests with a view of formulating standard specifications 
such as shall receive the endorsement of the National 
Brick Manufacturers’ Association at their next annual 
convention. It is therefore probable that, ere long, 
such specifications shall be arrived at and adopted by 
common consent of both the manufacturers and engi¬ 
neers. In the meantime, reliance will have to be placed 
upon the judgment of experienced engineers,—those 
who have given the subject most careful thought and 
investigation, and who will take into consideration 
both the general properties and characteristics of the 
paving material employed, and the usage to -which it 
will be subjected. 







SOME EORMS OF PAVING BRICK 

































































































CHAPTER VI. 


SIZE AND FORM OF PAVING BRICK. 


HIS is a matter upon which different opinions are 



l prevalent. Some parties prefer a brick the size 
of a standard building brick ; others insist that paving 
brick should be about 9 in. long, 4 in. broad and 3 in. 
thick, while still others advocate the use of blocks 12 
in. x 5 in. x 4 in. At the same time it is universally 
acknowledged that a standard size and form of paving 
brick should, by common consent, be arrived at and 
adopted. Under the present system, if a city has a 
number of streets paved with brick at different times 
and by different companies, it is likely that more or less 
variation exists in the size and form of the brick used 
in these different pavements, which may be a source of 
considerable annoyance later on when repairs are to be 
made, as it is desirable in repairing pavements to use 
the same sized brick as the pavement was originally 
composed of. 

Many of the leading manufacturers and city engineers 
favor a paving brick the size of ordinary building brick. 
The advocates of this size of paving brick claim that 
they are easier to dry and burn, and can be more thor¬ 
oughly vitrified than large blocks, and hence will wear 
better and more evenly in the street. Also, if building 
brick size is adopted, those not suitable for pavers can 
be sold for building purposes, consequently the manu¬ 
facturers will be more careful in selecting their paving 
brick, and can furnish them cheaper than if making a 
larger block, which when rejected for paving purposes 
would be a total loss ; consequently the cities only pay 
for the brick they use, and not for those that are insuf- 



ficieutly burned, or spoiled in the process of manufact¬ 
ure. The pavements will be cheaper, and, owing to the 
increased care in selecting the brick, will be better. It 
is further claimed that the regular sized brick are heavy 
enough to withstand any pressure, can be handled more 
economically in all the processes of manufacture, and 
are easier for the men laying the pavement to handle, 
as the reach required to grasp the brick will not tire the 
hand. They also give better foothold for the horses, 
especially on grades of over three per cent. 

Those advocating large blocks for paving purposes, 
claim in their favor that they make less joints and less 
wear; that they make a firmer pavement, having a 
smoother surface. They also claim that, with proper 
care in burning, the large sized blocks can be thoroughly 
vitrified. 

All things taken into consideration, however, it would 
seem that the preponderance of evidence is in favor of 
a paving brick of the same size as an ordinary building 
brick. 

One of the main reasons for the adoption of common 
brick size for pavers (namely, the ease with which culls 
or soft brick can be disposed of for other purposes), 
would also seem to preclude the use of patent or special 
shaped bricks with projections, ribs, etc., as these features 
would not be desirable in brick used for building pur¬ 
poses. 

It is also urged that brick should be laid close 
together to avoid chipping, and that for this additional 
reason lugs and projections should be discarded. 

The majority of paving brick manufacturers are 
agreed that rounding or beveled corners are preferable, 
being less liable to be broken off, and affording abetter 
foothold for horses. 






































































































CHAPTER VII. 


MANNER OF LAYING BRICK PAVEMENTS. 


T HE manner of laying brick pavements in different 
localities varies considerably, both as to kind of 
foundation used, number of courses of brick, etc. It is 
a matter of prime importance, however, that in every 
case the foundation for the pavement be carefully put 
in, and of substantial and durable character. If the 
foundation is imperfect, the pavement will soon settle 
in spots, and its value and usefulness be impaired. 

The street should be graded and shaped to its proper 
form, thoroughly under-drained, if necessary, and 
rolled. Should any depressions then appear in the road¬ 
bed, they should be filled with sand, gravel or other 
materials, and rolled until the entire roadbed shall be 
uniform, firm and compact. 

The foundation should be from 6 to 12 inches deep. 
In some cases gravel, broken stone, cinders or coarse 
sand is used for this purpose, in which case the founda¬ 
tion should be thoroughly graded, tamped and rolled. 
In many of the later pavements, foundations of macadam, 
cement or concrete have been very successfully used ; in 
fact the best engineering practice of the present time 
seems to be in favor of foundations of cement concrete 
as being firmer and more reliable. 

The accompanying cuts illustrate a variety of forms 
of brick pavements as used in different localities. 
Where the foundation is of cement or concrete but a 
single course of brick is required. Where sand, gravel 
or cinder foundation is used, the double pavement is, as 




PLAN OF BRICK PAVEMENT AT STREET 
INTERSECTIONS 



PEAN OF VITRIFIED BRICK INTERSECTION, SHOWING 
STREET RAILWAY CURVES, &C. 
















































































































































27 — 


a rule, the most satisfactory form. If a double pave 
ment is being coustructed, the brick in the first course 
are usually laid upon their broad surface, crosswise or 
lengthwise of the street, and are covered with a layer of 
sand from 2 to 4 inches thick. The upper course of 
brick is laid upon edge, crosswise of the street, and as 
far as practicable at right angles with the curb. The 
advantage of laying the brick at right angles wfith the 
street, instead of at an angle of 45 degrees, is that it 
affords a better foothold for horses. The brick in both 
courses should be so laid as to break joints the same as 
in a wall, this being usually done by starting every 
other row with half bricks at the curb lines. At the 
intersection of the streets the brick are usually laid at 
an angle of 45 degrees, and with such crown as the 
nature of the street will permit, keeping the brick 
close together in even lines with the joints well broken. 

If concrete foundation is used, it should be ordinarily 
from 6 to 8 inches thick, and over it should be a sand 
cushion from 1 to 2 inches deep. 

After the pavement is laid it should be thoroughly 
rammed and tamped with a flat iron rammer weighing 
40 to 50 lbs., or should be rolled by a heavy road roller 
until thoroughly settled to place and of the desired 
grade. Sand is commonly spread over the top and 
swept into the crevices. In many places the interstices 
are filled with cement, tar, pitch or composition filling, 
and then, in some instances, covered with a layer of sand. 



HALF OF 26-FT. BRICK ROADWAY, WITH 6-IN CONCRETE 
FOUNDATION, 2-IN. SAND CUSHION, AND 
ONE COURSE OF BRICK. 









CHAPTER VIII. 


SPECIFICATIONS IN LEADING CITIES. 


T HE following are brief abstracts from specifications 
used in some of the leading cities using brick 
pavements, and will give an idea of the standard condi¬ 
tions under which brick pavements of the different 
classes are constructed. 

Laying Brick Pavements in Chicago. 

Grading: 

The street is to be graded to conform to stakes and 
profiles furnished by the engineer in charge, thor¬ 
oughly compacted and rolled with a ten-ton steam rol¬ 
ler; or, where this is not practicable, by a five-ton horse 
roller. 

Foimdation: 

Two styles of foundation are used, namely, concrete 
and macadam. The concrete shall be composed of one 
part of finely ground hydraulic cement, two parts of 
sand, and five parts of hard lime stone, broken so as not 
to exceed inches in their largest diameter. The 
cement and sand to be mixed dry, then made into mor- 
tar, and the broken stone, thoroughly wet but contain¬ 
ing no excess of water in the heap, to be incorporated 
with it. After being properly formed in the roadway, 
the concrete must lie exposed for at least 8 days before 
the brick are placed upon it. 

Macadam, if used for foundation, shall be composed of 
clean stone, broken so as to pass through a ring from 2 











— 29 — 


to 3 inches in diameter. Upon the stone shall be spread 
sufficient limestone screenings to fill all interstices; 
then flooded and rolled with a ten-ton roller. 

Cushion: 

Upon the foundation shall be spread a layer of clean, 
coarse, sharp lake sand. 

Laying the Bricks: 

The bricks shall be laid on edge close together at 
right angles to the curb, breaking joints. On intersec¬ 
tions and junctions of lateral streets, the brick shall be 
laid at an angle of 45 degrees with the line of the street. 
The brick when set shall be rolled with a five-ton 
roller, or rammed with a 30-pound paving rammer. 

Filler : 

The joints between the brick shall be completely 
filled with asphaltic pitch, heated and poured at a tem¬ 
perature of about 300 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Top Dressing: 

The surface of the pavement shall then receive a one- 
half inch dressing of clean, coarse, lake sand, spread 
evenly over the whole surface. 

Laying Brick Pavements in Philadelphia. 

Grading: 

The street shall be graded to a sub-grade of 9^ 
inches, and thoroughly compacted by rolling with a 
five-ton steam roller. Soft and spongy places shall be 
dug out and refilled with coarse sand or gravel screen¬ 
ings, and rammed solid previous to rolling. 

Foundation: 

Upon the sub-grade shall be laid a bed of hydraulic 
cement concrete, 4 inches in thickness. The concrete 


shall be composed of one measure of cement and two of 
clean, sharp sand, mixed dry and made into mortar with 
the least possible amount of water. The stone shall be 
limestone, slag, or other equally hard stone, clean and 
broken to pass through a two-inch ring. The stone 
shall be thoroughly drenched with water, then incorpo¬ 
rated immediately with the mortar in such quantities 
that, when rammed, free mortar shall appear upon the 
surface. Concrete shall be evenly spread upon the 
foundation, and rammed with wooden rammers until it 
is thoroughly compacted and has a clean mortar surface, 
which surface shall be 5^ inches below the grade of the 
top of the finished pavement. 

Sand Cushion : 

After the concrete is properly set, one inch of clean 
bar sand shall be evenly spread upon it. 

Bricks and Blocks , and How Laid: 

The bricks or blocks must be vitrified clay, repressed 
and especially burned for street paving, and not less 
than 9 inches long, 4 inches wide and 3 inches thick. 
They may have two or more ribs or projections upon 
one of the vertical sides extending from top to bottom, 
and, on the opposite vertical side, a groove or channel 
extending longitudinally from end to end of the brick 
or block, and connected with a like transverse groove 
extending across each end. Other vitrified bricks, how¬ 
ever, may be used if not inferior in quality. 

They must be set vertically on edge, close together, 
in straight rows across the street, excepting at intersec¬ 
tions, which shall be paved at an angle of 45 degrees to 
the line of the intersecting roadways, breaking joints. 
Half bricks can be used only at curbs to break joints. 
The pavement must then be rolled and the joints be¬ 
tween bricks filled with Portland cement grouting, 


— 3i — 


composed of one part fresh ground Portland cement 
and one part clean bar sand, mixed to the proper con¬ 
sistency with water. 

Laying Brick Pavements in Columbus. 

Grading : 

The roadbed is to be excavated to the required depth, 
soft and spongy places dug out, refilled with bank 
gravel or broken stone and thoroughly compacted by 
rolling or ramming. 

Sub-Drains: 

A sub-drain shall be placed on each side of the road¬ 
way, 2 feet from the curb lines, 4 inches in diameter, of 
hard-burned, vitrified drain tile, laid 1 foot below the 
sub-grade, after which the trench must be refilled to the 
level of the sub-grade with screened gravel. If the 
roadway is made with a cement grouting, drain tile 
shall be laid in the center of said roadway. 

Foundation : 

This may be either of broken stone or concrete. The 
broken stones shall not measure more than 2 y 2 inches, 
to be spread in a layer upon the sub-grade, then covered 
with bank sand and compacted by rolling with a ten-ton 
roller. The thickness of said layer, after being com¬ 
pacted, to be at least 8 inches. 

If concrete foundation is used, it shall be 6 inches in 
thickness, and composed of one measure of best hy¬ 
draulic cement and two of clean, sharp, river sand, 
mixed dry and made into mortar with the least possible 
amount of water. Crushed boulders, limestone or 
other equally hard material, clean, drenched with water, 
will then be incorporated immediately with the mortar, 
in such quantities as will give a surplus of mortar when 
made. 


- — 32 — 


Cushion : 

Upon the concrete shall be spread 2 inches of clean, 
sharp sand. 

Bricks and Hoiv Laid: 

The bricks or blocks must be hard-burned, of uniform 
size, free from flaws, cracks or breaks. Broken bricks 
are to be used only at the curbs to break joints. The 
brick shall be laid in straight lines at right angles to 
the curb except at street intersections. Paving to be 
thoroughly rammed with a 75-pound rammer. 

Filler: 

The joints or spaces between bricks to be filled with 
coal tar paving cement, ordinarily numbered 6, heated 
and used at a temperature of at least 300 degrees Fahr¬ 
enheit. Surface of the paving when completed to be 
covered with a half inch dressing of sand. 

Laying Brick Pavements in Des Moines. 

Two styles of brick pavements are in use in this city, 
namely, one course of brick on concrete, with paving 
cement filler, aud two courses of brick on sand founda¬ 
tion with sand filler. 

Grading: 

The surface to receive the pavement shall be brought 
to the proper height and shape and thoroughly rolled. 
Soft spots shall be thoroughly tamped and filled with 
sand or gravel and rolled. 

Foundation : 

If concrete foundation is used, it shall be 6 inches 
deep, composed of one part of best Milwaukee cement, 
two parts clean, sharp sand, and five parts of broken 
stone; stone to be clean, tough and angular, not larger 
than 2^/2 inches in their greatest dimension, and not 





— 33 — 


less than y z inch in their smallest dimension. On the 
concrete shall be spread a 2-inch layer of clean, sharp 
sand. 

If sand foundation is used, it shall be 5 inches deep, 
made smooth, and brought to the proper curvature. 

Laying the Bricks: 

If concrete foundation is used, one course of standard 
size paving bricks, 8 y X4 x 2% inches, shall be set on 
edge in courses at right angles to the direction of the 
street, breaking joints. 

If sand foundation is used, two courses of brick w T ill 
be laid, the first layer flat-wise, in courses parallel to the 
direction of the street, and breaking joints. The joints 
shall be sw r ept full of clean, fine sand, and covered with 
a one-inch sand cushion. The top course of brick shall 
be laid upon edge in courses at right angles to the 
direction of the street, breaking joints. 

Filler: 

If concrete foundation is used, the joints between 
bricks shall be filled with paving cement, containing 
not less than ten per cent, of asphalt, and heated to 
300 degrees Fahrenheit. The surface of the pave¬ 
ment shall then receive a slight sprinkling of sand. 

The top course of brick in double course brick pave¬ 
ment on sand foundation shall have all joints and open 
spaces swept full of clean river sand, and the surface 
entirely covered, one-half inch deep, with the same. 

Laying Brick Pavements in Memphis, Tennessee. 

Foundation : 

Upon the sub-grade surface shall be spread a concrete 
foundation composed of one measure of fresh burned 
cement, and two of clean, sharp sand, mixed wilh fine 


— 34 — 


gravel and hard blue or flinty gray limestone, broken or 
crushed to pass through a 2^-inch ring. Sand and 
cement to be mixed dry and made into mortar with the 
least possible amount of water, and macadam added in 
such quantities as will leave a surplus of free mortar 
when well rammed. Wet or spongy places in the sub¬ 
grade to be filled with concrete. Depth of the concrete 
foundation to be not less than 8 inches, and the top 
surface of the same to be 5 inches below the finished 
surface of the pavement. 

Sand Cushion : 

On the concrete foundation, wlieu well set, a sand 
cushion \]/ z inches deep shall be spread. 

Laying Pavement: 

The bricks are to be laid on edge at right angles to 
the line of the curb, and in parallel lines with as close 
contact as possible on sides and ends, with joints broken 
by starting at curb lines with half bricks in alternate 
rows. Street intersections shall be laid at an angle of 
45 degrees, pavement to be thoroughly rammed three 
times with a 40-pound rammer, and the interstices filled 
with No. 6 distilled coal tar pitch containing not less 
than 10 per cent, of pure Trinidad asphalt, heated to 
about 300 degrees. Upon this must bs spread % of an 
inch of clean, sharp sand, made perfectly dry by heating, 
and also to be hot when applied to the surface of the 
pavement. The hot sand must be thrown over the 
boiling pitch as rapidly as the pavement is filled in, the 
object being to make the pavement a solid mass and 
practically water tight. 



CHAPTER IX. 


COHPARATIVE ADVANTAGES AND COST OF 
BRICK PAVEMENTS. 


F) RICK Pavements are reasonable in first cost, and 
Id/ cost less to maintain than any other form of 
pavement. Ihey are also very easy to repair, or to take 
up in putting in gas or water pipes, or for other pur¬ 
poses, being far superior in this respect to granite, 
cobble stone, cedar or asphalt. When properly laid, 
they are unsurpassed as to durability under traffic; they 
are free from dust, comparatively free from absorption, 
and rank first as to freedom from decay, hence they are 
very desirable from a sanitary stand-point. They afford 
better foot-hold for horses than either asphalt or cedar 
blocks, nor do they radiate, as does asphalt, an intense 
and disagreeable heat in summer. For ease of traction, 
brick surpass all paving materials but asphalt. 

Of the different paving materials, asphalt ranks 
first in freedom from absorption, brick being a 
close second; but in point of cost of maintenance, 
ease of repair, durability under traffic, foot-hold for 
horses, and freedom from decay, brick are far ahead. 
Cedar blocks, which offer the advantages of cheap¬ 
ness of first cost, and also of freedom from noise, decay the 
most rapidly and have a larger percentage of absorption 
than any of the other leading paving materials, hence 
soon become very offensive and unhealthful. They a e 
much more expensive to maintain than brick pave¬ 
ments, are more difficult to repair, have less durability 



— 36 — 

under traffic, cause more annoyance from dust, are in¬ 
ferior as to the foot-hold afforded for horses and as to 
ease of traction. 

Granite pavement is more expensive in first cost and 
also to maintain, harder to repair, more noisy, more 
dusty, and has less freedom from absorption. The ease 
of traction of granite pavement is also much less, be¬ 
ing in this respect superior only to cobble stone pave¬ 
ment. When wet, it becomes very slippery. The chief 
merit of granite for a paving material consists in its 
adaptability for heavy traffic service. Competent authori¬ 
ties, however, claim that in point of durability under 
traffic and freedom from decay, brick, when properly 
selected and laid under the most approved specifications, 
are superior to even granite. 

The cost of Brick Pavements varies greatly in differ¬ 
ent localities, depending upon whether a double or 
single pavement is laid, also upon the amount of grad¬ 
ing necessary, depth and kind of foundation, cost of 
materials, trauspoitation, etc. In point of first cost, it 
compares very favorably with asphalt and other leading 
paving materials while in point of cost of repairs and 
renewals, it is much more economical, and its other ad¬ 
vantages make it far superior for general use. In 
Columbus, Ohio, where pavements of nearly every kind 
have been used, brick pavements have cost from $1.75 
to $2.35 per square yard, depending upon the kind of 
brick used. I11 the same city, asphalt has cost from 
$2.40 to $3.00, Medina stone from $2.98 to $3.94, and 
granite from $3.75 to 4.23. In Philadelphia, brick pave¬ 
ments have cost from $1.95 to $2.10 per square yard; 
in Memphis, Term., with deep concrete foundations, 
the cost of brick pavements has ranged from $2.32 to 
^2.8? oer square yards, while in other cities and towns, 


— 37 — 


owing to the variety of conditions and circumstances 
controlling, the cost has varied greatly. It is, perhaps, 
safe to say that first-class brick pavements, laid in the 
most approved manner, can ordinarily be had at from 
$2.00 to $2.50 per square yard, depending upon the con¬ 
trolling conditions. 

Taking all things into consideration, the fact remains 
that Brick Pavements combine reasonable first cost and 
cheapness of maintenance, with great durability and 
general excellence, and render for the expense involved 
the most satisfactory service of any paving material 
which has yet come into use. 



CHAPTER X. 


Partial List of Cities and Towns in the United States 
Using Brick Pavements. 

- I 


Akron, O. 

Albany, N. Y. 
Allegheny City, Pa. 
Allentown, Pa. 
Alliance, O. 

Alton, Ills. 

Altoona, Pa. 
Amsterdam, N. Y. 
Anderson, Ind. 
Ashtabula, O. 
Atchison, Kas. 
Atlanta, Ga. 
Avondale, O. 
Baltimore, Md. 
Barnesville, O. 
Beatrice, Neb. 
Bloomington, Ills. 
Boone, la. 

Boston, Mass. 
Bradford, Pa. 
Bucyrus, O. 

Buffalo, N. Y 
Burlington, la. 
Canton, O. 

Canton, Ills. 

Cedar Rapids, la. 
Champaign, Ills. 
Charlestown, W. Va. 
Chattanooga, Tenn. 
Chicago, Ills. 
Cincinnati, O. 
Clearfield, Pa. 
Cleveland, O. 
Clinton, la. 


Columbus, O. 

Council Bluffs, la. 
Covington, Ky. 
Davenport, la. 
Dayton, O. 

Decatur, Ills. 

Des Moines, la. 
Detroit, Mich. 
Dubuque, la. 
Dunkirk, Ind. 
Dunkirk, N. Y. 
Easton, Pa. 

Elmore, O. 

Erie, Pa. 

Evansville, Ind. 
Findlay, O. 

Fort Smith, Ark. 
Fort Wayne, Ind. 
Fostoria, O. 

Fremont, Neb. 
Fremont, O. 
Galesburg, Ills. 
Galveston, Texas. 
Germantown, Pa. 
Gloversville, N. Y. 
Grand Rapids, Mich. 
Hampton, la. 
Hornellsville, N. Y. 
Houston, Tex. 
Indianapolis, Ind. 
Ithaca, N. Y. 
Jacksonville, Fla. 
Jamestown, N. Y. 
Johnstown, Pa. 






39 — 


Kansas City, Mo. 
Kenosha, Wis. 

Keokuk, la. 

Causing, Mich. 

Laporte, Inch 
Leavenworth Kas. 
Lexington, Ky. 

Lincoln, Neb. 

Litchfield, Ills. 

Little Rock, Ark. 
Lockport, N. Y. 
Logansport, Ind. 
Louisville, Ky. 

Los Angeles, Cal. 
Ludlow, Ky. 

Lyons, la. 

Marion, O. 
Marshalltown, la. 
Mattoon, Ills. 

Memphis, Tenn. 
Monongahela, Pa. 

Mt. Vernon, O. 
Nashville, Tenn. 
Newark, O. 

New Castle, Pa. 

New Cumberland, W.V.i. 
New Haven, Conn. 

New Orleans, La. 
Newport, Ky. 

Norwalk, O. 

Oskaloosa, la. 

Ottumwa, la. 
Parkersburg, W. Va. 
Pekin, Ills. 

Peoria, Ills. 
Philadelphia, Pa. 
Portsmouth, O. 

Port Clinton, O. 


Quincy, Ills. 

Racine, Wis. 

Roanoke, Va. 

Rockford, Ills. 

Rock Island, Ills. 

Salem, O. 

Saginaw, Mich. 

St. Joseph, Mo. 

San Bernardino, Cal. 
Sandusky, O. 

Saratoga Springs, N. Y. 
Scottdale, Pa. 

Sedalia, Mo, 

Sioux City, la. 

South Evanston, Ills. 
Springfield, Ills. 
Springfield, Mo. 
Steubenville, O. 
Summittville, Ind. 
Syracuse, N. Y. 

Terre Haute, Ind. 
Tipton, Ind. 

Toledo, O. 

Tonawanda, N. Y. 
Topeka, Kas. 

Troy, N. Y. 

Trenton, N. J. 

Warren, O. 

Washington, D. C. 
Washington, Ind. 
Wellsburg, W. Va. 
Williamsport, Pa. 
Wilmington, Del. 
Wooster, O. 

York, Pa. 

Youngstown, O. 
Zanesville, O. 


CHAPTER XI. 


SOME STATISTICS. 


T HE following table contains partial statistics as to 
the amount of brick paving done in some of our 
leading cities and towns in 1894; also as to the work 
along this line contemplated for 1895. The figures rep¬ 
resent only approximately the amount of work done or 
contemplated, nor are the statistics in any sense of the 
word complete, as a large amount of brick paving w r as 
done and is contemplated in cities and towns from 
whom we have no report, and which are, hence, not in¬ 
cluded in this table: 

AMOUNT OF BRICK PAVING. 


Done in 1894. 


Contemplated in 
1895. 


Albany, N. Y_ 

Allentown, Pa. 

Alton, Ill. 

Altoona, Pa. 

Anderson, Ind. 

Ashtabula, O. 

Atchison, Kas. 

Atlanta, Ga. 

Baltimore, Md. 

Bloomington, Ill... 

Bradford, Pa. 

Buffalo, N. Y. 

Burlington, la. 

Cincinnati, O. 


2,464 sq. yds.. 
3,000 sq. yds.. 

^ mile. 

3> io 3 sq. yds.. 
2,238 sq. yds.. 
8,466 sq. yds.. 
19,000 sq. yds 

1 mile. 

529 sq. yds. 

19,930 sq. yds 


2,838 sq. yds.. 
28,000 sq. yds 
52,500 sq. yds 


10,000 sq. yds. 


8,240 sq. yds. 


20,220 sq. yds. 
25.000 sq. yds. 
900 ft. 


30,000 sq. yds. 

2 miles (in ’95 &’96). 
17,600 sq. yds. 
25,000 sq. yds. 
100,000 sq. yds. 










































— 4i — 

amount of brick paving — Continued. 


Cleveland, O. 

Council Bluffs, la.. 

Covington, Ky. 

Davenport, la. 

Dayton, O. 

Des Moines, la. 

Dubuque, la. 

Easton, Pa. 

East St. Louis, Ill. 

Elmore, O. 

Erie, Pa. 

Evansville, Ind. 

Fostoria, O. 

Frankfort, Ind. 

Gloversville, N. Y. 
Hornellsville, N.Y. 
Huntingdon, W.Va. 
Indianapolis, Ind.. 

Ithaca, N. Y. 

Jamestown, N. Y... 

Keokuk,la. 

Lansing, Mich. 

La Porte, Ind. 

Leavenworth, Kas. 

Lincoln, Neb. 

Litchfield, Ill. 

Lockport, N. Y. 

Logansport, Ind... 

Louisville, Ky. 

Marion, O. 

Marshalltown, la... 

Mattoon, Ill. 

Memphis, Term.... 
Monongahela, Pa... 


Done in 1894. 

Contemplated in 
1895. 

88,612 sq. yds. 

8,000 sq. yds. 

9.579 sq. yds. 

2 15 miles. 

87,462 sq. yds. 
f 5,000 sq. yds. 

\ (already let.) 
12,300 sq. yds. 

2.5 miles. 

62.17^ SQ. vds. 

131,134 sq. yds... 

75,000 sq. yds. 

60,000 sq. yds. 

5,708 sq. yds. 

57,900 sq. yds. 

7,055 sq. yds. 

0 nnn feet. 

2,060 sq. yds. 

miles. 

16,614 sq. yds. 

2 miles. 

60,000 sq. yds. 

18,000 sq. yds. 
22,000 sq. yds. 

6,000 sq. yds. 

13.500 sq. yds. 

20,004 sq. yds. 

18,500 sq. yds. 

oz mo <;n vds. 

3 99 miles . 

5 miles. 

10,800 sq. yds. 

37,865 sq. yds. 

on 'ion cn vds. 

20,000 sq. yds. 

1,750 sq. yds. 

5,129 sq. yds. 

tc Rno sn vds _ 

14,600 sq. yds. 

6,970 sq. yds. 

TTC 1 A A Qfl vds. . 

16,000 sq. yds. 

1 1 D>/44 s 4- 

mile. 

*7 cnn cn vrl ft 


/ O u ' J s 4‘ . 

6,000 sq. yds. 

r t; miles. 

7,500 sq. yds. 

About 7 miles. 
98,000 sq. yds. 

5,000 sq. yds. 

32,800 sq. yds. 

30,000 sq. yds. 

34,000 sq. yds. 

32,200 sq. yds. 

t f\c\ a cn vdc 

23,000 sq. yds.... 




































































— 42 — 

amount of brick paving — Continued. 


Done in 1894. 


Contemplated in 
1895. 


I 

New Castle, Pa. 


2.14 miles 


f 40,000 sq yds. in 
\ ’95 and ’96. 


Norwalk, O. 

Oberlin, O. 

Oskaloosa, la. 

Oswego, N. Y. 

Ottumwa, la. 

Parkersb’rg, W. Va. 

Peoria, Ill. 

Port Clinton, O. 

Quincy, Ill. 

Rock Island, Ill. 

Sandusky, O. 

Saratoga I 

Springs, N. Y. j 

Springfield, Ill. 

Springfield, O . 

Springfield, Mo.... 

St. Joseph, Mo. 

Summittville, Ind. 

Tipton, Ind. 

Toledo, O. 

Trenton, N. J. 

Troy, N. Y. 

Warren, O. 

Washington, Ind... 
Williamsport, Pa... 

Wooster, O. 

Zanesville, O. 


2,420 sq. yds 


21,269 sq. yds 


17,059 sq. yds 
33.368 sq. yds 

3.85 miles. 

210,600 sq. ft. 

37 blocks. 

50,700 sq. yds 
17,809 sq. yds 

4,880 sq. yds. 

D/ 2 miles. 


1,029 sq. yds 
800 feet. 

14,900 sq. yds 

57.500 sq. yds 

6.500 sq. yds.. 
23,124 sq. yds, 
6,000 sq. 3’ds.. 

180 sq. yds. 

9,127 sq. yds.. 
2,000 sq. yds.. 
15,coo sq. yds 


2,000 sq yds. 
9.370 sq. yds. 
1,000 feet. 
20,000 sq. yds. 


4.15 miles. 
3,600 sq. ft. 

25 blocks. 
35,000 sq. yds. 
46,312 sq. yds. 


95,000 sq. yds. 
6,665 sq. yds. 

2 miles, (in ’96.) 
1,500 sq. yds. 


16,000 sq. yds. 


36,000 sq. yds. 
20,500 sq. yds. 


8,400 sq. yds. 
12,000 sq. yds. 
25,000 sq. yds. 
60,000 sq. yds. 































































CHAPTER XII. 


REPORTS FROn CITY ENGINEERS. 


T HE following are brief synopses of reports recently 
furnished by the City Engineers of over fifty lead¬ 
ing cities and towns using brick pavements. The re¬ 
ports presented briefly indicate the results obtained 
from a total of about 400 miles of brick pavement, con¬ 
structed after a variety of specifications, and subjected to 
usage of all degrees of severity. The 55 cities and towns, 
whose experience has been quoted, range in population 
each from 1,000,000, or over, down to those of 5,000, or 
under, embracing two cities with a population each of 
over 1,000,000; six with populations ranging from 100,- 
000 to 300,000; nineteen with populations of from 20,000 
to 75,000 ; ten with populations of from 10,000 to 18,000; 
nine with populations of from 5,000 to 9,000, while only 
nine of those quoted have less than 5,000 inhabitants 
each. That the general verdict is favorable to the use 
of brick for paving purposes, is not only a matter pre¬ 
senting a hopeful outlook for the brickmakers, but one 
that is also worthy of the thoughtful consideration of 
everyone interested in the highly important subject of 
street paving. 

For convenience in reference, the reports are classi¬ 
fied according to the size of the cities represented. 
They are as follows : 

REPORTS FROM CITIES OF 100,000 TO 1,000,000 POP¬ 
ULATION, OR OVER. 

Chicago, Illinois, J. H. Flagg, Chief Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 



— 44 — 


Have only y z mile of brick pavement, upon Lake Av¬ 
enue; it has been laid for over four years, is subjected 
to medium traffic, and has given good satisfaction. The 
City Council have ordered over 12 miles additional of 
this pavement, which will be put in during the early 
Spring. The bricks used upon Lake Avenue were not 
repressed, but future specifications will call for re¬ 
pressed vitrified shale brick. 

Philadelphia, Pa., George A. Bullock, Chief of Bureau 
of Highways, reports in the neighborhood of 60 miles 
of streets paved with this material. From a copy of the 
last annual report of the Bureau, we glean the following 
facts: 

Upwards of 90 per cent, of the brick pavements in 
Philadelphia are of West Virginia fire-clay, and most of 
them are wearing fairly well. They are upon the resi¬ 
dence streets, and those not subjected to extraordinar¬ 
ily heavy traffic ; they are clean, non-slipping, easily re¬ 
paired, and on grades exceeding 5 per cent, give more 
satisfaction than any material in use. I11 some of the 
first streets paved with vitrified bricks, the bricks were 
irregular and unevenly burned; the streets paved with 
this lion-assorted brick are not wearing w r ell, but those 
paved with brick carefully assorted by the maker, show 
the difference in a marked degree, and are wearing fairly 
well. During the year of this report, 10 miles w r ere 
added. 

Cleveland, Ohio, M. E. Rawson, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements, first adopted in Cleveland between 
five and six years ago, have about 330,000 square yards, 
used mostly upon residence streets ; is giving excellent 
satisfaction, when cost is considered; costs less than 
one-half the price of block-stone, or asphalt pavements. 

Louisville, Ky., Chas. V. Mehler, Chief Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Adopted brick pavements in the spring of 1891. 
Have about 14 miles of it in use 011 all kinds of streets, 
and it is giving general satisfaction. 


— 45 — 


Buffalo, New York, S. J. Fields, Chief Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

First brick pavement laid five years ago ; have 3 y 2 
miles of it, being, with one exception, upon residence 
streets ; some of the first brick pavements with tar-filled 
joints have been unsatisfactory, but recent pavements 
with cement-filled joints are entirely satisfactory. 

Columbus, Ohio (Joseph Kinnear, City Engineer), has 
more brick pavements in use than any other city in the 
country, and hence its verdict is more weighty and con¬ 
clusive. Its report is as follows: 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1887; about 90 miles 
of it now in use upon all kinds of streets, heavy traffic, 
medium traffic, and residence. On the whole, it is giv¬ 
ing good satisfaction, depending upon the brick used. 

Detroit, Michigan, H. D. Eudden, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first laid in 1890; 9.8 miles in use at 
present on heavy traffic, medium traffic and residence 
streets ; it is fairly satisfactory on all but heavy traffic 
streets. 

Indianapolis, Indiana, reports : 

Adopted brick pavements in 1891; over 11 miles of 
streets, of all classes, heavy traffic, medium traffic, and 
residence, and three miles of alleys so paved; it is giv¬ 
ing fair satisfaction. 

REPORTS FROM CITIES OF FROM 20,000 TO 80,000 POP¬ 
ULATION. 

Nashville, Tennessee, J. A. Jowett, City Engineer, rer 
ports : 

Brick pavements, of different kinds, have been in use 
for seven or eight years ; have about 12,000 square yards 
of it upon residence streets and alleys, except a trial 
pavement of one block upon Main Street, which is sub¬ 
jected to a continuous and mixed travel; this pavement 
has been down about three years, and shows no serious 
wear. 


- 46 - 


Wilmington, Delaware, James Wilson, Chief Engi¬ 
neer, reports : 

Have about 4 y z miles of brick pavements in use upon 
medium traffic streets. Brick pavements, first adopted 
in Wilmington in 1890; are very satisfactory. 

Memphis, Tennessee, A. T. Bell, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

First brick pavements first completed in April, 1889 ; 
to date, about miles have been laid ; it is subject to 
medium heavy traffic; no repairs have been made, ex¬ 
cept when torn up by gas and water companies. There 
is considerable wear immediately alongside of the rails 
to street railway track ; other than this, the pavements 
are apparently as good as when laid. The surface, after 
five years’ wear, was almost perfect; these pavements 
are giving universal satisfaction. 

Adna Dobson, City Engineer, Lincoln, Neb., reports : 

Brick pavements first laid in Lincoln in 1888. Have 
now 12 2r-ioo miles of brick pavements, on medium 
traffic, business and residence streets. 

It is giving very good satisfaction, wherever good 
brick has been used, and in my judgment, if brick are 
carefully selected, it will give satisfaction on any street. 

Peoria, Illinois, Jacob Harman, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first introduced in Peoria in 1884. 
11 miles of such pavements are now in use, four miles 
of which were laid during the present year. They are 
used upon all classes of streets, from residence to 
heaviest traffic. Where the brick have been of good 
quality and well laid, they are giving satisfaction. Con¬ 
siderable pavement was laid with 4x5x12 paving bricks, 
which, upon the whole, are not satisfactory, the diffi¬ 
culty being to properly burn and vitrify bricks of this 
kind. All of the recent work, and that contemplated 
for next year, will be of ordinary sized brick, with six- 
inch concrete foundation. 

Grand Rapids, Michigan, H. A. Collar, Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first laid in 1891; 62,000 square yards 


— 47 — 


are in use, most of which is very satisfactory and stands 
the wear very well. 

Chattanooga, Tennessee, Robert Hooke, City Engi¬ 
neer, reports: 

First brick pavement laid in 1889, with common red 
brick, on a street but little traveled. I11 1891 and 1892, 
four miles of streets were paved with vitrified brick, on 
medium traffic and residence streets. Indications are 
that they will prove quite satisfactory. 

Fort Wayne, Indiana, Frank M. Randall, City Civil 
Engineer, reports: 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1891 ; over y/ z miles 
of heavy traffic and residence streets, besides miles 
of alleys, are so paved, and giving general satisfaction. 
In July of the present year, several brick were removed 
from a street where the heaviest traffic had been, and 
with the exception of a slight chipping of the edges, the 
brick were as good as when put down. 

Wheeling, W. Va., F. L,. Hoge, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1893 ; have about 
13 y z miles of it in use upon heavy traffic, medium traf¬ 
fic and residence streets. Paving gives ordinarily good 
satisfaction, although the manner of laying it, in some 
cases, was bad. 

Des Moines, Iowa, Frank Pelton, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements were first adopted in 1888; eighteen 
miles of brick pavements have been laid upon all classes 
of streets. Brick used in the first pavements were of 
inferior quality, and show considerable wear. The later 
pavements are of better quality, and show hardly any 
wear. It is believed these pavements will last twenty 
years, or more. Where good brick were used, they have 
given the best of satisfaction. 

Topeka, Kansas, W. Tweeddale, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick paving first laid in 1890; 55,187 square yards of 
it have been laid on light traffic and residence streets ; 


- 48 - 

has given general satisfaction. The brick have chipped 
a good deal, due to inferior quality; rounding the edges 
might be an improvement. 

Davenport, Iowa, Thomas Murray, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1889; 10 miles of it 
in use upon all classes of streets; gives excellent satis¬ 
faction. 

Dubuque, Iowa, W. H. Knowlton, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1892 ; 1 x / 2 miles of it 
in use upon all classes of streets ; gives good satis¬ 
faction. 

Youngstown, Ohio, F. M. Lillie, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first laid in 1886; three miles of it 
are now in use upon tw y elve streets, varying from resi¬ 
dence streets to business streets of very heavy traffic; 
the heaviest traffic street paved w’ith brick is in excellent 
condition after four years’ wear. The earliest brick 
pavements laid in 1886 and 1887 are still in use, but 
give very poor satisfaction, as the quality of the brick 
and the foundation were both very poor. The later 
pavements give very good satisfaction. 

Bloomington, Illinois, W. P. Butler, City Engineer, 
reports: 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1874; have 9 miles 
of it in use ; 110 other kind ; it is laid on both business 
and residence streets, gives universal satisfaction, and 
the citizens are a unit in favor it. 

Burlington, Iowa, William Steyh, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Adopted brick pavements in 1887 ; have about 20,000 
square yards in use on all classes of streets; satisfaction 
the very best. 

Amsterdam, New York, F. E. Crane, Civil Engineer, 
reports: 

Brick pavements were first used in 1890 to the extent 


49 — 


of 3,000 yards on a heavy traffic street, with a single- 
track trolley road in the center; the pavement has given 
excellent satisfaction up to the beginning of this Sum¬ 
mer, but during the past season it has begun to wear, 
so as to be appreciably rough in riding rapidly over it 

Rockford, Illinois, Charles C. Stowell, City Engineer, 
reports: 

Brick paving was first laid in the Fall of 1891; two 
miles of it are in use upon streets of medium traffic; 
gives general satisfaction, except for noise. 

Racine, Wisconsin, O. Burlingame, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

One thousand and twenty-three square yards, laid in 
1893, on heavy traffic streets; it is giving good satis¬ 
faction. 

REPORTS FROM CITIES OF 10,000 TO 20,000 POPUEATION. 

Rock Island, Illinois, W. A. Darling, City Engineer, 
reports: 

Has over 10 miles of brick pavements, which were 
first adopted in 1889. They are in use on all classes of 
streets, and the citizens are much pleased with them. 
The foundation is composed of 6 inches of macadam. 

Parkersburg, W. Va., J. S. A. Farrow, City Engineer, 
reports : 

Adopted brick pavements in 1888. Have in all some 
So,000 yards of brick pavements on all kinds of streets. 
Are giving good satisfaction. Never think of laying any 
other kind of pavement. 

Decatur, Illinois, G. V. Doring, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Used brick for paving in 1884, and have added several 
blocks every year since; have about 15 miles of it in 
use, and one mile yet to be laid; have about 1,000 linear 
feet of cobble pavement, which they think of replacing 
with brick ; the verdict is, that when put down prop- 
erlv, and of good material, it makes a good and satis¬ 
factory pavement. 

Evanston, Illinois, Henry Haddock, City Engineer, 
reports: 


— 5 ° — 


Laid its first brick pavements in the Fall of 1891; eight 
blocks of it are in use on the heaviest traffic streets. 
The only wear reported has been such as to give better 
footing to the horses, and not such as to materially in¬ 
jure the pavement. 

Galesburg, Illinois, M. J. Blanding, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

This city began laying brick pavements in 1885, on 
one of the main thoroughfares, from the C., B. & Q. 
Passenger Depot to Main Street, a distance of one- 
fourth mile; this pavement never had a dollar’s worth 
of repairs spent upon it until this season, and that only 
in consequence of the improper laying of a water main. 
Since 1885, additional pavements have been added, and 
the city now has about 12 miles of it in use on heavy 
traffic and residence streets ; it is clean, noiseless, cheap, 
and gives entire satisfaction. 

Portsmouth, Ohio, B. C. Bratt, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements were adopted in the Spring of 1891, 
and about 14 miles of it are in use, 3 miles being upon 
heavy traffic streets ; gives good satisfaction. 

Saginaw, Michigan, R. W. Roberts, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

First piece of brick pavement laid in 1891, upon a 
heavy traffic street, since which about 2,000 square yards 
has been added ; it is giving reasonably good satisfac¬ 
tion. 

Keokuk, Iowa, W. H. Jones, City Engineer, reports: 

Brick pavements were first put down in 1892, about 
36,000 square yards of it in all; it is used upon the 
principal business streets ; the pavement gives general 
satisfaction. 

Clinton, Iowa, reports : 

Brick pavements were first adopted in 1889; have 12 
miles of it in use 011 both residence and heavy traffic 
streets ; they give excellent and perfect satisfaction. 

Fremont, Ohio, E. A. Dickinson, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 


— 5i — 


First brick pavement laid in 1889, since which a little 
over 3 miles have been added upon both heavy traffic 
and residence streets, all of which have given the best 
of satisfaction. 

REPORTS FROM CITIES OF 5,000 TO 10,000 POPULATION. 

Dunkirk, N. Y., J. M. Hackett, City Engineer, reports : 

Brick pavements were first adopted in Dunkirk, in 
1890. About 5^4 miles of this kind of pavement is in 
use on medium traffic and residence streets, and gives 
the best of satisfaction. 

Norwalk, Ohio, John Daylin, City Engineer, reports : 

Have used brick paved streets for six years, and so 
far they have been giving very good satisfaction. Have 
used Porter, Vulcan, Malvern, Massillon and other 
bricks, and all seem in good condition. 

Mt. Vernon, Ohio, A. Cassil, City Engineer, reports: 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1892, on the main 
street; it is giving very good satisfaction. 

Mattoou, Illinois, M. B. Fitch, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1890; miles of 
it are in use, and about 2 miles more will be added next 
year; it is upon medium traffic and residence streets; 
results good. 

Oskaloosa, Iowa, J. E. Davis, City Engineer, reports : 

Put in its first brick pavement in 1891 ; 5 miles of it 
are now in use, extending over both business and resi¬ 
dence streets, and every yard of it is in good condition. 
This pavement has cost nothing for repairs, and the 
people are well pleased with it. 

Champaign, Illinois, J. P. Dunlap, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

The first brick pavement put down in this city has 
been in use about eleven years on the main business 
street; it is now showing in a few places some wear, this 
being on account of a few bad bricks. Champaign also 
has 4 miles of brick pavement on residence streets ; it 
gives good satisfaction. 


— 52 — 

Alliance, Ohio, George R. Gyger, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Put down brick pavement first in the Fall of 1888 ; 
have about 3 miles of it in use on business and resi¬ 
dence streets, giving entire satisfaction. 

Anderson, Indiana, Harry H. Rogers, City Engineer, 
reports: 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1892; over 100,000 
square yards have been put in; the brick pavements are 
giving excellent satisfaction. 

Beatrice, Nebraska, Willis Ball, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements were adopted six years ago ; Beatrice 
has 7 miles of brick pavements, upon both business and 
residence streets, which have given entire satisfaction. 

REPORTS OF CITIES OF 5,000 POPULATION OR LESS. 

Litchfield, Illinois, E. F. Harper, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1890; 2 miles in use 
upon heavy traffic and residence streets ; giving good 
satisfaction. 

Kenosha, Wisconsin, J. B. Davidson, Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

The main street, 1,500 feet long, is paved with brick ; 
the pavement has been laid two years, and is in excel¬ 
lent condition. 

Canton, Illinois, George W. Chandler, City Engineer, 
reports: 

Have used brick pavements one year; have a little 
over 1 mile of it, mostly on business streets, which is 
in good condition. 

Lyons, Iowa, reports : 

Adopted brick pavements in 1892; have 2 miles in 
use upon main business streets with good satisfaction. 

Boone, Iowa, R. M. Mitchell, City Engineer, reports: 

Adopted brick pavements in 1892 ; amount laid, 16,- 


— 53 — 

847 square yards, upon business streets ; it is giving 
good satisfaction. 

Bartlesville, Ohio, George H. Buchanan, City Engi¬ 
neer, reports : 

Have used brick pavements since 1891, in the busi¬ 
ness and residence part of the city, to the extent of 
about 2 miles, with good results. 

Clearfield, Pa., H. J. Hinterleitner, City Engineer, re¬ 
ports : 

Brick pavements first adopted in 1891; have over 1 
mile of it, about three-fourths of which is on streets 30 
feet wide, balance on streets 22 feet wide. The traffic 
is medium. It is giving the very best satisfaction. 

P'ort Smith, Arkansas, James B. Gass, City Engineer, 
reports : 

Brick pavements were adopted in 1889 ; 2 miles are in 
use on heavy traffic, medium traffic and residence 
streets, with entire satisfaction. 

New Cumberland, West Virginia, reports : 

Adopted brick pavemen's in 1891 ; have 2 miles of it 
in use ; it is giving good satisfaction. 


CHAPTER XIII. 


SOME COMPARISONS, PRESS CLIPPINGS, ETC. 


Granite and Brick Paving Compared. 

T HE question is often asked, “Will brick last as 
long as granite ? ” If the matter is considered in 
its proper light, I think this question may be answered 
by saying that, except possibly in the most heavily 
traveled streets, the same expenditure will give as last¬ 
ing a pavement with the best quality of hard burned 
brick as with granite, and the pavement will be better 
and be kept in better repair. Let us suppose, for 
example, that brick pavement can be laid in the best 
possible manner for $2.20 per square yard, and that it 
will have to be entirely renewed in a certain street every 
eight years, and that granite, costing $3.10 per square 
yard, will last in the same street without renewal for 
twenty-four years. Calling the expense of renewing 
the brick $1.04 and that of the granite $2.23 per square 
yard, the entire expenditure in the case of the brick 
pavement, including compound interest at five per cent, 
on all sums expended, and a renewal at the end of a 
period of twenty-four years, besides the two renewals 
at eight and sixteen years, will be $11.94, "while in the 
case of the granite, computed on the same basis, the 
entire expenditure will be $12.23, a difference of twenty- 
nine cents per square yard in favor of the brick. The 
above estimates are as favorable to granite as possible, 
$3.10 per square yard being a very low price indeed for 
granite laid on a concrete base, while the renewals are 
computed in both cases under the supposition of the 
best work, with tarred joints in the case of granite. 



— 55 — 


Probably long before the expiration of a period of 
twenty-four years good paving bricks will be produced 
near at hand, and with the expense of transportation 
saved, the renewals can be effected at considerably less 
than $1.04 per square yard. I believe, therefore, that in 
all streets of moderate traffic, brick can be laid and 
maintained at a less cost than granite, and that it will 
give much better satisfaction. —Extract from annual 
report of Horace Andrews, City Engineer, Albany, N. Y. 

Asphalt and Brick Compared. 

Mayor’s Office, City Haee, 

Syracuse, N. Y., Oct. 30th, 1894. 

Mr. F. Chieeingsworth, New Haven, Conn. 

The asphalt pavement laid in Syracuse since 1889 cost 
from $2 to $3.90 per square yard. But, the $2 pavement 
was simply a low bid for one company to get a foothold 
here, and does not represent a fair cost. The $3.90 is a 
ten year guarantee. The average price for the five year 
guarantee of asphalt is about $2.50. The brick average 
for five year guarantee is $2.18. This is all on a concrete 
foundation of 6 in. The cement used is Rosendale. I 
am informed, and it is my belief, that the average life of 
the asphalt is from seven to eight years. The greatest 
length of time that the brick pavement has been laid in 
Syracuse is five seasons. There have been no repairs 
on the brick pavement up to the present time. An 
asphalt pavement and a brick pavement that was laid 
five seasons ago would be a good comparison. The 
asphalt has been repaired for the last two years, and the 
brick has not had a dollar’s expense and is in good con¬ 
dition. The brick pavement referred to carries the 
heaviest traffic we have in the city of Syracuse. The 
asphalt I mentioned is on a resident street. In my 


— 56 — 


opinion, the brick pavement will outlast two asphalts, 
if you get good brick that is properly constructed. It 
is very essential to have a good foundation to any pave¬ 
ment. Jacob Amos, Mayor. 

Macadam, Asphalt and Brick Paving Compared. 

Hazeeton, Pa. 

The question of paving the streets, and the following 
from the Germantown Independent , will be of interest 
to our local legislators: 

“During the wet season just passed,” the paper says, 
“ the macadam paving was mud half-way over shoe-top, 
while the brick paving was dry and clean. The 
macadamized roads in winter were full of ruts, while 
the brick pavement conies through the snow and slush 
practically as good as new.” As to sheet asphalt, the 
Independent declares that it cannot compare with 
vitrified brick, either in cleanliness or lasting qualities, 
wearing so full of holes in five or six years as almost to 
necessitate relaying. In conclusion declares the Inde¬ 
pendent , “ Give us vitrified brick in preference to any 
other kind of pavement yet introduced. It is the best 
of the lot.” 

This is not only the experience of Germantown, but 
of every other place where the various paving materials 
now competing have been fairly and impartially tested. 
Vitrified brick is “ the best of the lot,” and all signs go 
to indicate that it is destined to supplant them all, and 
to be the street pavement of the future.— The Plain 
Speaker. 

A Severe Test. 

The strength of brick pavements was recently put to 
a severe test at Troy, New York, when a thirty-eight 


— 57 — 


ton girder for a new bridge was drawn over Jefferson 
street, which had been newly laid with Mack paving 
brick. The load was placed upon two four-wheeled 
trucks and drawn by four teams of horses. The bricks 
stood the test without showing the slightest effect of 
the great weight placed upon them. The wheels made 
an indentation of about an inch in the granite blocks at 
the Second street intersection, but nowhere along the 
brick pavements was there any evidence that the heavy 
section of iron passed over it. It is not to be wondered 
at that the people of Troy are well pleased with their 
brick pavements.— Clay. 

Vitrified Brick in the New England States. 

A recent issue of the New Haven, Conn., Register 
contained an interview with a gentleman who had 
traveled extensively in the cities of this country, and 
had given the subject of street paving considerable 
thought. Regarding the value of vitrified brick, with 
which he is very much impressed as a material for street 
pavements, he said: 

“ There are two important considerations that must 
always be kept in mind, namely, wearing surface and 
foundation. A pavement takes the place of the steel 
rail of the railroad. It must be of a kind to give good 
wearing service, and without a solid foundation it soon 
becomes useless and gets out of place. On this account, 
in some places where brick have been laid the result has 
not been satisfactory, as in Boston, where it was laid on 
the soft, sandy soil, without any hardening whatever. 
But in other places, where it is laid upon a firm, solid 
foundation, as in Springfield, on the corner of School 
and Main streets, the result is satisfactory to the general 
public and the abutting property owners. The same is 
true of the pavement laid on York street in this city. 


-5«- 


This pavement was laid on a foundation consisting of 
hard, rolled ground, with four inches of concrete 
dressing, upon which was laid an inch and one-half of 
clean sand as a bed for the brick to rest upon. The 
spaces between the bricks were filled with hot sand. 
The result of the use of the pavement on York street 
has been most favorable, as shown by the fact that while 
the center of the street was left paved w T ith stone, no 
one driving through it would force his horse to travel 
in the center, and if he did, the horse would turn out at 
the first opportunity and take to the brick. This showed 
the horse’s choice of the brick in preference to the 
slippery stone. It is undoubtedly true that the spaces 
provided between the bricks offer good clinging places 
for the calks in the horse’s shoes, so that a large load 
can be drawn with less effort than on many other kinds 
of pavement .”—Paving and Municipal Engineering . 


“ If brick material shall be as carefully tested as it 
ought to be; if none but such of the material as has 
passed the test, and especially none showing surface 
defects, is allowed to be moved to the street; if uniform¬ 
ity of strength and hardness are thus secured in all 
materials the pavers handle, and assuming that the road¬ 
bed has been properly prepared for the finishing ma¬ 
terial, then a good, satisfactory, lasting street will be 
secured. This has been proven in hundreds of in¬ 
stances by long use of brick pavements thus thoroughly 
and honestly made. 

“ A great advantage of brick for paving over either 
asphalt or granite lies in its original comparative cheap¬ 
ness, and the facility with which it can be relaid, at 
almost nominal cost as compared with most other kinds 
of pavement.— The Tradesman . 









CHAPTER XIV. 


THE OUTLOOK. 


I N spite of bitter opposition from those financially 
interested in the manufacture, sale or use of other 
paving materials, and notwithstanding the prejudices 
fostered by such parties, brick pavements have steadily 
grown in public favor and use. The record of their 
successes is certainly very gratifying, and one of which 
the brickmakers may well be proud. It is true, there 
have been instances where brick pavements have r ot 
given entire satisfaction; but this is also true of every 
other form of paving material that is or ever has been 
in use. To the credit of brick, however, it must be said 
that such instances are comparatively few, and may be 
traced to causes which those supervising the work 
should not have allowed to exist. In constructing a 
pavement of any kind, there are certain conditions 
which must be complied with, if success would be 
assured, and brick pavements are no exception to this 
rule. There must be proper preparation of the road 
bed, and the foundations should be of the most ap¬ 
proved type, substantial in character and of ample 
depth. If then the brick are selected with due care and 
are laid in the most approved manner, the results can¬ 
not fail to prove commensurate and gratifying; where 
these conditions of success, however, are slighted or 
ignored, an inferior pavement must be expected. In 
many of the earlier pavements, owing to ignorance of 
w r hat constituted the prime requisites of paving brick, 



— 6o — 


they were not, in some cases, selected as carefully as 
should have been the case, and this naturally produced 
poor results. In many other instances, however, brick 
pavements have been unjustly condemned, because of 
having been laid on poor foundations which soon gave 
way and caused the pavement to become uneven and 
unsatisfactory. With the present high standard of pav¬ 
ing brick produced, however, and the greater experience 
in proper formation of road bed and foundation, there 
can be no reasonable excuse for the repetition of such 
failures, if proper care is used by those supervising the 
work. The great superiority of the later pavements 
which is a fact capable of easy demonstration, is in it-, 
self sufficient evidence of the truth of the preceding 
statement. 

The future of brick pavements is largely a question 
of adaptability of the material to the uses to which it 
is put, and the key to the situation is largely held by 
the city engineers and the brick manufacturers. It, 
therefore, should be a matter of mutual concern to both 
of these interests to see that this problem be worked 
out faithfully and conclusively. Too great haste should 
not be made in advocating the use of brick pavements 
for the heaviest traffic streets of our largest cities. The 
utility of brick for medium traffic and residence streets 
of these cities, and for all traffic streets of our smaller 
cities and towns has been clearly shown ; but experi¬ 
ments on the heavy traffic streets of cities of the first 
class have not as yet been extensive enough to justify 
the unqualified recommendation of paving brick for 
such places under all circumstances. The bricktnakers 
should make haste slowly in this matter, for the industry 
they seek to promote will establish itself all the more 
firmly and enduringly by reason of proper conservatism 




— 6i — 


of its friends and advocates. Experimental tests of 
pavement should be laid on heavy traffic streets under a 
variety of conditions, and ample time should be allowed 
to demonstrate and correct weak points, if there beany, 
and the results should be accurately and scientifically 
noted. By conducting a series of conclusive tests along 
this line, the paving brick industry will smoothly and 
perfectly adjust it elf to the sphere it is qualified to 
occupy and maintain; and in the meantime, if the ad¬ 
vocates of paving brick are enabled to secure its adop¬ 
tion on even a fair percentage of the streets to which it 
is unquestionably adapted, they will find plenty to do in 
keeping pace with the demand, for it will many times 
exceed the present capacity of paving brick works now 
established. 

Brick pavements are of great promise; they have the 
elements of utility and practicability to a remarkable 
degree, and if the industry is handled judiciously, there 
will be little difficulty in many times multiplying its 
present volume of business, or in adding to the already 
enviable prestige of vitrified brick, which we predict 
will in time become the leading paving material of the 
country. 
















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